George Clooney has previously been recognized as one of the most influential people in the world. The title was apt considering his commitment to economic and political activism. The Ocean’s Eleven actor is dedicated to making positive changes to the global political scenario. In his endeavors, he has a great partner in Amal Clooney, who’s a human rights lawyer.
The Clooneys married in a grand wedding ceremony in September 2014 and welcomed their twins, Ella and Alexander, in June 2017. Amal Clooney was honored with the Gwen Ifill Award from the Committee to Protect Journalists in 2020.
Amal Clooney’s Uncomfortable Joke About Meryl Streep And Husband George Clooney
Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep presented George Clooney’s significant other with her Gwen Ifill Award virtually. She received the Award for her “extraordinary and sustained achievement in the cause of press freedom”. Amal Clooney delivered a thoughtful seven-minute speech addressing press freedom issues, during which she began by praising the Sophie’s Choice actress.
However, in her effort to keep it light, Amal Clooney made a somewhat uncomfortable joke involving her husband and Streep. She jokingly shared that while she might not rise to Streep’s level of fame, she had one thing in common with The Devil Wears Prada actress. She revealed that both had been “married” to George Clooney.
Clearly, Clooney and Streep had not been married, but Mrs. Clooney was referring to their voice roles as husband and wife in the animated film, Fantastic Mr. Fox. Amal Clooney shared in her speech at the CPJ’s 2020 International Press Freedom Awards:
“You are an inspiration as a woman, as an artist, as a press-freedom advocate. I know I can’t ever hope to win the number of awards that you’ve won, but it does occur to me that we have something special in common, which is that we’ve both been married to my husband. And honestly, the fact that you did it as Mr. and Mrs. Fantastic Fox just makes that so much less awkward.”
Despite the awkwardness of the joke, the rest of her inspiring speech more than made up for it. Earlier, her husband also had used the Fantastic Mr. Fox reference to describe Streep, but it was to defend Streep against Donald Trump’s attack.
George Clooney Defended Meryl Streep Against Donald Trump’s Remarks
Meryl Streep’s acceptance speech after receiving the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award at the Golden Globes 2017 gained significant media attention. The Mamma Mia! actress used the platform to criticize Donald Trump’s imitation of a disabled reporter. Soon after, Trump took to Twitter to deride the Kramer vs. Kramer actress as one of the most overrated actresses in Hollywood.
At an event for his Netflix documentary, The White Helmets, George Clooney came to the Don’t Look Up actress’s defense, responding to Trump’s remarks in a sarcastic tone. The Ticket to Paradise actor told People:
“I’ve always said that about Meryl. She’s maybe the most overrated actress of all-time. She and I worked together on Fantastic Mr. Fox as husband and wife and I will tell you even as a fox, a female fox, she’s overrated. [To Trump] Aren’t you supposed to be running the country?”
At the time, Clooney, a supporter of Hillary Clinton, also shared his fear that Trump would destroy the country during his tenure. The Batman & Robin actor along with his wife Amal Clooney have founded the Clooney Foundation for Justice which aims to protect human rights worldwide and bring people who have committed human rights abuse to justice.
Fantastic Mr. Fox is now available for streaming on Max.
